Beardie has swollen lumps around her eye

[affinenine]

Hi all! A few months ago I posted here about a strange pink lump on Butternut's eyelid (first pic is what it looked like August 18th, last two are from a few days ago). I kinda came to the conclusion it might've just been a scratch that swelled up and would go away with a little topical treatment. However, over the last few weeks, I've noticed that it has gotten much bigger and new lumps have now formed below her eye. She has so noticeable physical symptoms. Appetite is hearty. Her poo is normal. Good energy levels. Other eye is normal. No discharge. I'm more hysterical about the lumps than Butternut is. The eye itself looks clear, and she doesn't seem to be uncomfortable, though she will jerk away and close her eye if I touch the swollen areas.

I am unable to take her to a vet right now as the only one close to me won't be accepting new patients until Feb due to a spike in covid cases in my area. I'm also still paying off a previous procedure Butternut had earlier this year. I'm so at a loss of what to do.

I'd like to know if anyone has experienced these lumps before on their beardie or might have an inkling of an idea of what they might be so I can try some palliative remedies until I can get her to an exotic vet. I can't seem to find any similar cases online. I've considered everything from a vitamin A deficiency to cancer. The large lump on the top of her eyelid seems hard but can be moved almost like a wart. The lumps below her eye are tougher. A day ago, I starting giving her a few diluted drops of echinacea and goldenseal extract per a vet's recommendation as well as ReptiRinse eye drops. I'm also continuing to provide topical treatment with neosporin and manuka honey...

Other info about her setup:
75 gallon with two Reptisun UVB T8 and T5. Substrate is reptile carpet, but I'm looking into changing her to tile for sanitary reasons. Basking is 95 - 100 F, cool side is 80ish.

 

[KarrieRee]

Hi all! A few months ago I posted here about a strange pink lump on Butternut's eyelid (first pic is what it looked like August 18th, last two are from a few days ago). I kinda came to the conclusion it might've just been a scratch that swelled up and would go away with a little topical treatment. However, over the last few weeks, I've noticed that it has gotten much bigger and new lumps have now formed below her eye. She has so noticeable physical symptoms. Appetite is hearty. Her poo is normal. Good energy levels. Other eye is normal. No discharge. I'm more hysterical about the lumps than Butternut is. The eye itself looks clear, and she doesn't seem to be uncomfortable, though she will jerk away and close her eye if I touch the swollen areas.

I am unable to take her to a vet right now as the only one close to me won't be accepting new patients until Feb due to a spike in covid cases in my area. I'm also still paying off a previous procedure Butternut had earlier this year. I'm so at a loss of what to do.

I'd like to know if anyone has experienced these lumps before on their beardie or might have an inkling of an idea of what they might be so I can try some palliative remedies until I can get her to an exotic vet. I can't seem to find any similar cases online. I've considered everything from a vitamin A deficiency to cancer. The large lump on the top of her eyelid seems hard but can be moved almost like a wart. The lumps below her eye are tougher. A day ago, I starting giving her a few diluted drops of echinacea and goldenseal extract per a vet's recommendation as well as ReptiRinse eye drops. I'm also continuing to provide topical treatment with neosporin and manuka honey...

Other info about her setup:
75 gallon with two Reptisun UVB T8 and T5. Substrate is reptile carpet, but I'm looking into changing her to tile for sanitary reasons. Basking is 95 - 100 F, cool side is 80ish.

What brand of basking bulb are you using? Is it a daytime bulb or regular basking bulb? You only need one uvb in the tank-- I would keep the T 5 and get it as close to your basking bulb that you can- distance should be 12-15 inches in the tank directly above the basking decor - they expire in approx one year I recommend 10-11 months- flagging your post to Tracie she's our vet tech mod
@Drache613

 

[affinenine]

What brand of basking bulb are you using? Is it a daytime bulb or regular basking bulb? You only need one uvb in the tank-- I would keep the T 5 and get it as close to your basking bulb that you can- distance should be 12-15 inches in the tank directly above the basking decor - they expire in approx one year I recommend 10-11 months- flagging your post to Tracie she's our vet tech mod
@Drache613

Thank you for replying! I usually use ZooMed's Repti basking bulbs, 75 watt and 50 watt, on either side of her tank. The distance is right in the sweet spot. I replaced her UBV about four, five months ago so they're not quite ready to replace just yet. I can remove the T8 if it's too much. I'm always so worried about MBD.

 

[KarrieRee]

Thank you for replying! I usually use ZooMed's Repti basking bulbs, 75 watt and 50 watt, on either side of her tank. The distance is right in the sweet spot. I replaced her UBV about four, five months ago so they're not quite ready to replace just yet. I can remove the T8 if it's too much. I'm always so worried about MBD.

What are your surface basking temps-- are you using digital probe thermometers to get them-- the dragon needs temps of 95-100 to start digestion-- cool side of the tank should be 80's during the day - your dragon needs to be able to get out of the uvb w/ out hiding from it - your T 5 is good

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

Butternut is a pretty girl, sorry she is having trouble with her eye!
It has been awhile but I remember a case somewhat like yours on this forum. The topical
home remedies you are using sound terrific. I can't think of much else to treat it with but you
can try getting some chamomile tea bags, & using one, warmed & moistened. Place it over
the eye at night when she is going to sleep, like a warm compress. To help hold in a little heat,
you can put a washcloth on top of it too.
Since bumps keep cropping up, it is probably going to be viral in nature. Or, it could be bacterial,
but you would need to somehow have them culture any fluids, etc from one of the bumps.
You could try giving colloidal silver to help try to internally clear anything up. Manuka honey is a very
good natural antimicrobial & antibacterial agent so you could mix a few drops up with some warm
water to thin it out & give orally.
Let us know how she is doing.

Tracie

 

[affinenine]

Hello,

Butternut is a pretty girl, sorry she is having trouble with her eye!
It has been awhile but I remember a case somewhat like yours on this forum. The topical
home remedies you are using sound terrific. I can't think of much else to treat it with but you
can try getting some chamomile tea bags, & using one, warmed & moistened. Place it over
the eye at night when she is going to sleep, like a warm compress. To help hold in a little heat,
you can put a washcloth on top of it too.
Since bumps keep cropping up, it is probably going to be viral in nature. Or, it could be bacterial,
but you would need to somehow have them culture any fluids, etc from one of the bumps.
You could try giving colloidal silver to help try to internally clear anything up. Manuka honey is a very
good natural antimicrobial & antibacterial agent so you could mix a few drops up with some warm
water to thin it out & give orally.
Let us know how she is doing.

Tracie

Hi, thanks for replying! I can definitely try the chamomile tea bags, but Butternut sometimes moves in her sleep so she may toss it off. It makes sense that it could be a virus. I'm not sure how the vets would treat it. I guess maybe a steroid to help with swelling too...? So far, everything I've done has not managed to soothe or reduce the size of the bumps. If I touch them, they'll get redder as well. Ms. Nut's about had it with my shenanigans to "help" her lol.

I'll look into collodial silver. I saw come concerning side effects though, so I'm a bit on the fence about it. Otherwise, I'll continue with the topical and oral treatments. No improvement today, sadly.

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

Oh sorry, I should have mentioned you only need to leave the warm compress on for 10 or so
minutes, then you can take it off so she can sleep in peace!
Colloidal or ionic silver in small amounts & cycled is very safe. Like anything, moderation. It will
get flushed out of the system.
Let me do some viral research again, for other alternatives.
I hope she is hanging in there.

Tracie

 

[affinenine]

Butternut is doing well! Her lumps have not changed in size, but some of the redness, especially on the bumps below her eye, have reduced and look less "angry". I think we'll be able to make it until I find a vet. Still have no clue as to what virus it could be, but whatever it is, the growths seem benign as Ms. Nut does not seem peturbed by their presence. I'll update again if I get some more info. Thanks again!

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

That is great to hear Butternut is doing so well right now! I'm glad to hear the bumps haven't really
gotten any worse. Hopefully they stay the same & you will be able to have a vet take a look at them.
At least they don't seem to bother her though!

Tracie

 

[affinenine]

An update for everyone: Butternut's bumps have seemingly gotten worse and more plentiful. They now seem to be bothering her as well. Butternut's third eye membrane keeps trying to clean the eyeball, so perhaps there's a foreign irritant in her eye that has caused an infection . I finally found a vet that can see her in a week! I will keep this thread updated as I haven't come across a similar case on the forums with a posted diagnosis/cure yet. For now, her behaiors are all normal. Finger's crossed the ailment is treatable.

 

[KarrieRee]

An update for everyone: Butternut's bumps have seemingly gotten worse and more plentiful. They now seem to be bothering her as well. Butternut's third eye membrane keeps trying to clean the eyeball, so perhaps there's a foreign irritant in her eye that has caused an infection . I finally found a vet that can see her in a week! I will keep this thread updated as I haven't come across a similar case on the forums with a posted diagnosis/cure yet. For now, her behaiors are all normal. Finger's crossed the ailment is treatable.

Please keep us updated on her

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

Oh poor Butternut, I was hoping that those bumps would be starting to clear up by now, I am
so sorry!
That is a big possibility there is some type of infection manifesting in the eye, it could definitely
cause some issues.
Let us know how the vet visit goes for her, it is coming up soon.

Tracie

 

[affinenine]

Well, we were able to get Butternut to a vet today... They were baffled by the case! The team went ahead and took a biopsy of the largest lump, removing most of it, and we are eagerly awaiting the results. The vet broached the idea that the original abscess might be a separate issue, either cancerous or benign (hopefully the latter). As for the other smaller lumps around the eye, they are indeed from a bacterial infection as doc was able to "pop" most of them. We talked about the possibility of resistant pseudomonas.

Butternut is currently a bit doped up on tramadol and has a couple weeks worth of the antibiotic Fortaz to run through--quite an aggressive med. The vet also noted a bit of stomatitis that should hopefully clear up with treatment and may or may not be related to the eye infection.

However, the biggest revelation was that Butternut is a male! For five years, we all thought he was a girl because of his small femoral pores, but the doc jokingly said his head is simply too big to be a female LOL. He's also going on a slight diet. I'll keep the community posted for the biopsy results in a week or so.

 

[Drache613]

Hello!

Oh my, Butternut is a male, interesting! This happens fairly often, but not completely surprising.
The pores aren't always indicative of male or female because sometimes the pores on the male
are smaller for some reason. However, the heads are pretty good for accuracy on sexing them.
Hopefully there isn't any cancer involved here. Did they say when the biopsy results would be
back? Let us know what the results are.
Did they give you any cream or ointment for the bumps?
I hope he is hanging in there & doing well.

Tracie

 

[affinenine]

Hello!

Oh my, Butternut is a male, interesting! This happens fairly often, but not completely surprising.
The pores aren't always indicative of male or female because sometimes the pores on the male
are smaller for some reason. However, the heads are pretty good for accuracy on sexing them.
Hopefully there isn't any cancer involved here. Did they say when the biopsy results would be
back? Let us know what the results are.
Did they give you any cream or ointment for the bumps?
I hope he is hanging in there & doing well.

Tracie

I'm still baffled by Butternut being a male because I shone a flashlight through their tail, and they don't have two hemipenal bulges. There's just one by the vent . Butternut wasn't dna sexed, so there's still a possibility they may be female with an abnormally large head, LOL. Oh well!

As for the lumps, the doc put a coagulant on the ones he biopsied/popped. Butternut is healing very well! The lumps beneath their eye are still swollen, but they've only been given one shot of antibiotic so far. There's several more to go, so hopefully those will resolve over the next few weeks. Butternut gets tramodol for pain every 48 hours and is eating & basking normally .

I'll have some before/after pictures up when I get the biopsy results in a week or less. The main absess was fleshy and superficial which is uncharacteristic of cancer, so we'll see.